China is working on an ambitious project to set up its version of Silicon Valley by encouraging some handpicked tech startups that can match the technical expertise of US companies. Named as ‘little giants,’ the tech startups are the new blue-eyed boys of the Chinese government as the big players like Tencent and Alibaba and are out of the favor. Although these companies are unknown to the world, they have demonstrated their innovative prowess in doing something unique. These companies are highly active in quantum computing, robotics, and semiconductors. The little giants are China’s latest weapons in the ongoing US china tech war, and the Chinese are hopeful of tilting the scales in their favor. It should be enough to give them a leg’s up as the Asian giant is about to overtake the US economy and even introduced the country’s first digital currency.
Why is the focus on the little giants?
China had launched the program to nurture tech startups about a decade ago when companies like Tencent Holdings Ltd and Alibaba Group Holding Ltd spearheaded the tech war against the US. However, the Chinese behemoths have lost their prominence in the last few years as the government cracked its whip to rein in these companies that grew too big. Instead, the government is aggressively reviving its decade-old program and sponsoring the little giants showing immense potential to compete with the US companies globally. The Chinese companies look upon the label as a badge of honor that is much more than gaining recognition because it comes with many financial benefits from the government. The high credibility of these companies places them ahead of many big companies. This latest weapon of china should help take the war to the enemy camp.
The blessed companies
Besides receiving financial support and recognition for their exemplary work, the tech startups enjoy the government’s assurance to help them stay protected from regulatory punishment. China’s President Xi Jinping has showered his blessings to that program, which sent a positive signal to the employees and investors. The companies feel highly honored by the government’s treatment meted out because it’s an official approval of their high capabilities. The government subsidies and grants help them grow fast and expand their horizon of ambition by experimenting with new things to put them ahead of the curve. They feel proud that they have it to take their country to new heights and intensify the trade war against the US.
The dual goal of the program
Since the program to back tech startups is not new but a decade old, it will not be suitable to think that countering the US is the program’s only goal. According to china news, the Communist Party had taken up the ambitious project to reposition the country’s technology industry. It started by following the footsteps of the Silicon Valley that allowed a free run to the companies to help it demonstrate its full potential. The companies could pursue their global ambitions with minimal interference from the government. It resulted in enormous success as companies like the e-commerce company Alibaba, Byte Dance– the TikTok creator, and the social media giant Tencent became global names.
The change begins
Over the past year, the government expressed its displeasure about these and many other similar companies as they were not aligning with the government’s priorities. The government started taking regulatory measures and compelled Tencent and Alibaba to shun their anti-competitive practices. The government forced the games companies to limit the games’ timing to 3 hours per week for minors. The government introduced stricter norms for companies offering internet services.
The government’s vision
Instead of wasting the technological resources and talent in offering entertainment and pleasure (consider the massive gaming and streaming market), the government of China is eager to channel technical excellence in pursuit of bigger goals like creating enterprise software and chip manufacturing.
The government’s importance to the program of little giants makes its intentions clear about promoting hardcore technology that could make Chinese products more competitive. The country is working toward technological independence to complement its economic might.
